Wednesday, October 25 and Thursday, October 26

For this leg of our journey, the big destination is Green Turtle Bay in KENTUCKY! The Admiral’s beloved home state. We soon find out the journey is not an easy one!

Those Darn Batteries

We leave Alton headed for the famous fuel stop Hoppie’s Marina, located in Kimmswick. For most Loopers this is a mandatory fuel stop. There isn’t another place to get fuel until Paducah, Kentucky – 208 miles away. And guess what? This year, the fuel docks are not operating in Paducah! This poses a huge inconvenience for some Loopers.

Getting a reservation at Hoppie’s is a challenge. We hear of Loopers waiting at a marina for four days before securing a slip at Hoppie’s. We have planned ahead – for once! – and have a slip for two nights.

But that morning had other plans for us. And it wasn’t a stop at Hoppie’s.

Right after we leave Grafton’s, Captain Pat notices the battery power was plummeting. Unbeknownst to me, the batteries had been giving him problems since we left Logsdon. Hence his mood plummeting.

Captain Pat panics. He does not want to drain the house batteries, causing them to be replaced. These crazy batteries are supposed to charge three ways – by solar, hooked up to shore power, or by the engine as the boat is running. None of that seems to be happening.

Always An Alternative

I call Alton Marina (a marina on the way to Hoppie’s) and ask if we can please stop and ascertain the situation. The harbor master directs us to their guest dock. We tie up and start researching marine electrical mechanics in the area. We don’t have much luck.

In the meantime Captain Pat strings an electrical hookup cord to the power station on the dock. We later learn this is a no-no – not to be done on the guest dock. Captain Pat of course keeps it hooked up anyway.

I am not having any luck getting an electrical mechanic in the area. Finally, I connect with Bill Morrow, a local mechanic who works on boats in this marina. We are not sure if he is familiar with this type of battery. It’s a long shot.

I call Hoppie’s to cancel our reservation, and assure them we will be there tomorrow. They will hold our spot. And some Looper on the wait list will be very happy.

We pay for a one-night stay in Alton and dock Sunshine in a covered slip. This is new to us, to see covered slips in a marina. It’s most appreciated in the rain!

Just Like Being in a Hurricane

Patrick informs me we will not have any electricity, as this is draining the battery. I ask what will happen to the food in the freezer? How will we charge our phones? Suddenly it’s like being back home in Florida during power outages from a hurricane.  

I take a quick walk around the marina, and when I return, I discover Captain Pat has hooked us up to an alternate electrical cord, giving us power to run our freezer and charge our phones. Ingenuous. However, it is dark in the boat, due to the covered slip. Oh well, you can’t be picky at this point. We have to hope the mechanic coming tomorrow can work some magic.

Brian to the Rescue

This is when the miracle happens. I take a walk to Alton, end up at the McDonald’s for coffee and a McChicken. Walking back over the bridge, I run into Brian and Pam, the couple we had dinner with the evening before.

“Where’s Pat?”

“On the boat. It’s terrible. We don’t have any power. The batteries are not charging.”

“What’s the problem?”

“All I know is that it’s done this before. Pat is concerned because it shows the batteries are not holding a charge, and he is afraid of losing the house batteries.”

“I think he has the same lithium system that I have – from Battleborn?”

“Yes!”

“I’m very familiar with those. I put our electrical system in myself. Let me go to your boat and take a look.”

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Long story short – four hours later, with a conference call with the Battleborn installers, somehow the batteries are now showing 100% charged! Brian reset the system and it’s working fine. Turns out it is the Victron controller that is the problem. It shows the batteries are not charged when they are. We panicked for nothing.

And Brian’s wife, Pam, stopped by our boat with pumpkin pie she bought at the local bakery – so kind of her! They are two special people.

We happily cancel the mechanic scheduled for the morning.

On to Hoppie’s Marina

It’s a miracle but we make it out of Alton with batteries at 100%. Big high fives for us.

It’s drizzling and we have a lock to go through. But with the battery success we don’t even care.

Chain of Rocks

The lock is called “Chain of Rocks” – aptly named.

We enter the lock behind a sailboat – Sanctuary – we’ve been following.

Unfortunately there is a strong current and the sailboat’s captain is sailing solo. He has a devil of a time getting to the lock wall to tie up to the floating ballard. We watch him throw his hands up in the air in despair. He finally succeeds.

St. Louis on our Starboard Side!

Approaching St. Louis we see the famous “Archway to the West.”

My father’s oldest brother and sister – Joe and Florence – had homes in St. Louis, though we never visited. My brothers would go to the St. Louis Cardinals baseball games. I never visited St. Louis – this was my first time near the city.

Finally – Hoppie’s Marina

Approaching Hoppie’s there are several dock hands to help us. We are grateful as there is a wicked current and a tight fit at the end of the dock.

Hoppie’s is nothing luxurious – far the opposite. The marina consists of a long line of barges tied together.  

Debbie’s Briefing

The highlight at Hoppie’s is the 5 p.m. river briefing given by Debbie, the owner. The marina has been in her family for years and she knows the rivers like the back of her hand. She speaks for an hour, answering questions and offering advice as we proceed down the rivers to Green Turtle Bay, Kentucky.

Debbie tells the boaters that before you leave your slip in the morning, put your boat in reverse, to release any logs that may have migrated under your boat. Also, be on the lookout for logs and debris, especially “deadheads” – objects that are partially or entirely submerged in the water, posing hidden dangers to boats. Deadheads include logs, branches, debris, or even discarded items.

Debbie also warns us about the unresponsiveness of the barges and tow boats. They are working and consider the pleasure boats an annoyance. She suggests having the woman on board handle the radio – the barge captains seem to be nicer to a female voice. Their voices are sometimes impossible to hear – listen closely.

Debbie gives instructions on how to anchor your boat, depending on weather and water conditions. Jeremy at Heritage Harbor had already warned us that “for every inch of water rained, delay your trip by one day!” Needless to say we did not heed his advice, and kept plowing along in the torrential rain storms.

More on that adventure in our next posts! Here are photos from this two-day journey: